

4/3 



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Brooklyn Teachers Association 



1 




FREDERIC W. MAR, President 






I 



a 



AN AD-INTERIM REPORT OF AN IN- 
VESTIGATION OF THE ABSENCE 
OF TEACHERS OF NEW YORK CITY 
CAUSED BY PHYSICAL DISABILITY 
DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR 1913-14 
WITH A VIEW TO DETERMINING 
THE POSSIBLE EXISTENCE 
OF OCCUPATIONAL 
DISEASES 



Conducted by the 

COMMITTEE ON SCHOOL PROBLEMS 

OSWALD SCHLOCKOW, Chairman 




3 



7 



Brooklyn, N. Y., September, 191 5. 
Dr. Frederic W. Mar, 

President, Brooklyn Teachers Association. 
Dear Sir : — 

Your Committee on School Problems herewith begs leave to submit an 

AD-INTERIM REPORT OF AN INVESTIGATION OF THE ABSENCE 
OF TEACHERS OF NEW YORK CITY CAUSED BY PHYSICAL DIS- 
ABILITY DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR 1913-1914 WITH A VIEW 
TO DETERMINING THE POSSIBLE EXISTENCE OF OCCUPATIONAL 
DISEASES. 

Those who purpose to trespass on the time of a patient public by adding to the 
volume of the statistical matter of the community should justify themselves by showing 
that they are attempting to satisfy, in part at least, a real public need, and are not merely 
falling victim to that most unfortunate delusion so prevalent, that immortality can 
most easily be obtained by petrification in musty records. The Committee on School 
Problems should be pardoned, therefore, for prefacing its report with a statement of 
the reasons for undertaking this particular investigation. 

Curiosity is often aroused and attention fixed by seeming trifles, such as the mass of 
statistical flotsam and jetsam borne ashore by the cross currents of casual reading. Thus 
the public was informed, on page 375 of the Sixteenth Annual Report of the City Sup- 
erintendent of Schools, that in 1903 about 2.8 per cent of the total annual working time of the 
teachers of New York City had been lost by absence, and that in the year 1912 this per 
cent had increased to 5. These apparently insignificant figures may not attract atten- 
tion ; they become startling, however, when restated in the form, What causes, in the 
comparatively short span of nine years, resulted in an increase of almost one hundred 
per cent in the loss of time by absence of the teaching corps of the city? Again, on 
page 385 of the same report, we are informed that in the year 1912-1913 about 7,500, or 
40 per cent of the total of 19,500 teachers of the city were absent from duty. Even if 
we make a small allowance for absence due to causes other than illness, the figures 
show a startlingly large remainder ascribable to the physical disability of the teachers. 
Turning to the Reports of the Secretary of the Board of Retirement of the Department 
of Education, we become interested in such excerpts as (page 5, Report for the Year 
1910) : "There have appeared before the Board of Retirement during the first five 
years of its existence, 562 applicants. Of these, 219, or 39 per cent, were suffering from 

complete nervous affections The statement of causes for retirement given above, 

indicating as it does, the very great hazards of the teaching profession, will surprise 
most people who harp upon the 'easy' work of the teachers. The late President of 
Chicago University, Dr. Harper, once said : 'The number of physical wrecks furnished 
by the profession of teaching, is certainly larger in proportion than that of any other 
calling in life. In no other work can it be so truly said that the toiler gives forth 
his own strength to the one for whom he toils.' " Continuing, the Secretary states : "Those 
of us who have spent our lives in the school room are not at all surprised at these 
statements. We know of innumerable cases of physical breakdown and nervous pros- 
tration due entirely to close application to duty in stuffy and improperly cleaned and poorly 
ventilated school rooms filled with children who often transmit disease not only to 
their classmates, but also to their teachers. The teachers often have not the power of 
resistance to disease which more active children possess. When one realizes that it 
is becoming more and rnore certain that the school room is the distributing center for 
the contagious diseases of the community, the extra hazardous character of our profession 
becomes alarming indeed." 

As if to corroborate these statements, Lewis M. Terman (page 3, The Teachers' 
Health) remarks : "As will be shown later in detail, investigations indicate that the 
teacher becomes superannuated at a decidedly earlier age than the lawyer, physician, state 



official, "r man ni business." < >n page 25 of the same volume we read: "These statistics 
indicate a higher tuberculosis Mortality for the teaching profession than for the notor- 
iously unhealthful occupations of stone-cutter or saloon-keeper." 

Such statements and opinions emanating from individuals intimately acquainted with 
their subject, proved a sufficient incentive t<> the Committee on School Problems to under- 
take a carefully conducted investigation of the morbidity among the teachers of New 
York City in order to determine the hazard of teaching as compared with other pro- 
fessions and occupations, and. incidentally, to serve the cause of our teachers by creating 
in the public mind a proper understanding of the true nature of teaching. This general 
desire was Converted into a solemn obligation on the unexpected development of a sit- 
uation which deeply concerned the teaching staff. 

The Board of Estimate and Apportionment, owing to questions of policy and finance, 
withheld the usual appropriation for summer schools for the year [915, and suggested 

that a part of the regular teaching force he drafted to serve during the summer, thereby, 
of necessity, curtailing tin- highly prized summer vacation of the teachers. The latter 
naturally opposed this recommendation emphatically, alleging that the hazardous nature 
of teaching requires long periods of rest and relaxation. The sceptical, hard headed man 
in the street, critical in his estimates and prone to express personal judgment based on 
opinion rather than knowledge, took issue with this contention, and as firmly assever- 
ated that nothing could he easier than "bossing little children', adding that the ordinary 
worker, in general, is well content with vacations ranging from one to two weeks annually. 
The contest between the opposing forces soon developed into an indeterminate trench 
war- fare, as neither side had the necessary facts to bring the controversy to a fair and 
logical conclusion. The community, it must be conceded, has the power to coerce teachers 
to s t rve during the summer, but fairness compels us to admit that no thought of com- 
pulsion would be entertained, were the community fully convinced that the comparatively long 
summer vacation of teachers is really needed foi the conservation of teaching energy 
and the ultimate welfare of the pupils, and is not a luxury demanded for mere personal 
sell -gratification. The question at issue is, therefore: Is teaching a hazardous profession 
demanding special consideration, or is it to be classed with the normal occupations of 
the community ? 

The attempt to find an answer to this question is tie justification of the committee's 
effort; and even should the committee fail in this, its labors will not have been in vain 
should they stimulate interest in the problem and induce abler minds successfully to ter- 
minate what good intentions have awkwardly begun. 

PLANS OF PROCEDURE. 

At the very OUtsel of tin- investigation, the Committee discovered the almost total 
lack of statistical information bearing on the subject under investigation. It was a source 

of some surpri-e t<> note what little attention i* given in official reports to matters 
pertaining to the personal interests of teachers. Certain departments are. at present, 
Collecting the most minute statistical information concerning about 800,000 children at- 
tending our schools; there is information on the circulation of library books, and we can 
easily determine the financial value of the entire educational plant, but we know next to 
nothing about the teaching corps, upon which the ultimate welfare of the school system 
depends. Under these conditions, a great ileal of time, ubicb could have been used to better 

advantage turned by the Committee in collecting data. Added t<> this drawback 

was another of even greater in. port. Candor compels the admission that while the 

members of a committee of a teachers' association may be actuated by fervent zeal to 

the interests of their fellows and willing to sacrifice time and leisure in the 

pursuit of scientific investigation, thej uoly handicapped by the demands of their 

regular school work, which prevents that steady and COntinous application which research 

work requires. Laymen, moreover, working without any of the mechanical aids employed 
in modern statistical investigations are greatly hampered in tabulating large numbers of 

items and are. therefore, apt to commit slight inaccuracies I "he Committee is quite ready 



to concede that its work could have been more ably performed by the technically trained 
experts on the staffs of many of our public bureaus, but as such aid was not available, 
the Committee endeavored to overcome by dint of effort the lack of mechanical appliances. 

The Committee after due consideration, decided that the most feasible plan of 
conducting the investigation was to analyze the information contained in the application 
blanks submitted by teachers to the Board of Superintendents for the refund of salaries 
deducted for absence caused by illness during the year 1913-1914. In this connection, it 
should be noted that these applications do not represent the total absence of the teaching 
force, as many absentees do not submit refund applications for short periods of absence. 
While, therefore, the investigators realized that the totals obtainable from this source 
were below the actual figure, there was no practical way of overcoming this difficulty. 

The refund applications referred to contained the following information ; which the 
Committee decided to tabulate and interpret : (a) Sex of the applicant (b) Duration of 
the illness and (c) Nature of the illness. The following precedure and plans were then 
proposed : 

PLAN I. 

To tabulate and interpret the facts directly obtainable from the refund blanks, including 
the age of the applicant as one of the factors of the problem. 

PLAN II. 

To obtain similar information relating to other professions and occupations for pur- 
poses of comparison, and to determine, thereby, the relative hazard of teaching. It was 
hoped to secure such information from insurance companies writing so called 'Health 
Policies'. 

PLAN III. 

To induce other agencies to undertake a study of the etiology of any prevalent 
diseases disclosed by this investigation in order to remedy, as far as possible, the causes 
undermining the health of our teachers and destroying the efficiency of their work. 

This ad-interim report presents only the results obtained in accordance with the purposes 
set forth in Plan I. Even these results are not presented with any claim to finality, and 
the Committee is prepared, circumstances permitting, to undertake a similar investigation 
for the school year 1914-1915, in order to confirm or modify the results herein set forth 
for the year 1913-1914. The carrying out of Plans II and III will depend largely upon the 
cooperation extended by out-side agencies. 

A scientific classification of the diseases reported on the refund blanks was the first 
need of the investigators. This classification was prepared by Dr. Henry Fleischman, 
who for excellent reasons, adopted an anatomical system rather than one based upon 
symptoms or causes. The classification adopted is given in 

TABLE I. 

ANATOMICAL CLASSIFICATION OF DISEASES 
FROM WHICH TEACHERS SUFFERED. 



DISEASES OF THE 

RESPIRATORY SYSTEM 



(a) 


Bronchi and Trachea 


(b) 


Larynx and Epiglottis 


(c) 


Lungs 


(d) 


Nose, Nasal Passages and Accessory 




Sinuses 


(e) 


Pleura 


(f) 


Pharynx 



II. OPERATIONS 



Insufficient data for proper classification 



III. DISE VSES I IF THE NERVOUS 

SYSTEM 

IV. DISE ^SES OF THE EAR 



V. INFECTIVK DISEASES 



(a) Brain, Spinal-cord and Meninges 
(iii Functional Nervous Disorders 

ir) Cranial and Spinal Nerves 



(a) Influenza (1>) Chicken-pox 

(c) Whooping-cough (d) Carbuncle 

i(e) Diphtheria (f) Dysentery 

(g) Measles (h) Mumps 

(i) Erysipelas (j) Malaria 

|(k> Rheumatic Fever (1) Typhoid 

(in) Scarlet Fever 

(n) Relapsing Fever 



VI. MISCELLANEOUS DISEASES 

AXD CONDITION'S 



VII. DISEASES OF THE 

DIGESTIVE SYSTEM 



VIII. DISEASES OF THE 

URINARY ORGANS 

IX. DISEASES OF THE 

CIRCULATORY SYSTEM 

X. INJURY TO REGIONS 

XI. TUMORS 

XII. DISEASES OF THE SKIN. HAIR 

AXD NAILS 

XIII. DISEASES OF THE BLOOD 

XIV. DISEASES OF THE MIND - 

XV. DISEASES OF Till'. EYE 



XVI. DISE \M- OF l HE REPRO- 

DUCE E ORGANS 

XVII. DISEASES OF ill!-. BONES 

AND ( ARTILAGES 

XVlli. DIS1 >F Till-. DUCT - 

LESS GLANDS AND SPLEEN 

XIX. POISONINGS AND 

INTOXICATIONS 



(a) Rheumatism 
(li) Diahetes 
(c) Insomnia 

/(a) Tonsils 

(b) Stomach 

(c) Appendix and Intestine 

(d) Liver, Gall-hladder, and Gall-duct 

(e) Rectum and Anus 

(f) Teeth, Gums and Alveoli 

•j (a) Kidneys 

( (a) Arteries and Veins 
\ (b) Heart 

j (a) Face and Scalp 
"j (b) Lower Extremities 



(a) Anaemia 



j | Dist 
' do Ace 



seases 
ommodation and Refraction 
Errors 



\ ( a ) Male 

/(!>) Female (Uterus Functional) 



XX. DISEASES OF MUSCLES, FAS- 

CIAE AND TENDONS 

XXI. DISEASES OF THE JOINTS 

XXII. DISEASES OF THE 

LYMPHATIC SYSTEM 

XXIII. PARASITES AND FUNGI 

XXIV. UNCLASSIFIED 

The tabulation of the diseases reported was, at times, beset with difficulty, for in a 
number of instances physicians gave as the cause of absence such illness as sore throat, 
cold, nervousness, dyspepsia, etc., loose terms which make scientific classification impossible. 
In addition to this difficulty the reputed mysterious chirography of the medical profession 
cast an occasional veil of inscrutability over certain ailments. It is also very interesting 
and not less remarkable to note that certain diseases which are generally supposed to be 
prevalent among teachers are found to be of such rare occurrence as to make either one 
of the following deductions possible; that contrary to prevailing opinion teachers 
do not suffer from the diseases in question or : — that for one reason or other the 
physician through kindly regard for his patient failed to give a sufficiently definite diag- 
nosis. We have, however, limited ourselves in this report to the actual facts revealed by 
this investigation. 

TABLE If. 

Total number of Applications for Excuse of Absence of Teachers and 

Supervisors (All Causes) Year 1912-1913 : 7,500 

Estimated Number of Applications for Excuse of Absence Caused by Illness 6,500 

Estimated Number of Teachers and Supervisors in Service, Year 1912-1913 19,500 

Per cent of Absence Caused by Illness 33 

Total Number of Applications for Excuse of Absence Caused by Illness 

During the Year under Investigation ( 1913-1914) 4,148 

Total Number of Teachers and Supervisors in Service 20,141 

Per cent of Absence Caused by Illness 20^2 

Total Time Lost by Absence Caused by Illness (days)68,64i 

Average Number of Days Lost per Teacher Absent 16^ 

Table II requires elucidation. The great decrease in the percentage of absence from 
the year 1912-1913 to that reported for the year 1913-1914 — a drop from 33 per cent to 2054 
per cent — is probably accounted for by the unexpected suspension of all refund moneys 
for absence during the latter year. An unkind critic, unfamiliar with the high profes- 
sional standards of our teachers, might hastily infer that this decrease in absence was the 
result of the suspension of refunds and indicative of malingering; those, however, who 
know the loyalty and fidelity of the overwhelming number of the teachers of the city, are 
fully convinced that many teachers, who under normal conditions would and should have 
remained at home because of physical disability to teach, forced themselves to report for 
duty they could not properly perform. Whether the schools are ultimately benefited by 
service of this nature, is a question not requiring protracted discussion. 

Great as is the percentage of absence reported for the year 1913-1914, 20J/2 per cent 
of the entire teaching and supervising corps, it is the conviction of the Committee that 
this figure fails to give a correct measure of the total illness existing among teachers, not 
only because of the unusual conditions referred to in the preceding paragraph but also 
because absence refund blanks are not generally submitted for brief periods of illness. 
What a figure the totals would have reached had the investigators been able to 
determine the number of cases of chronic invalidism existing among teachers performing 
service! In a report of this kind, dealing with the general health conditions of all the 



teachers, such uld receive attention and be included in the totals, but, unfortun- 

ately, the Committee could find no official records bearing on teachers' morbidity, and for 
the ».ikr of statistical accuracy had to limit itself to the refund blanks for absence. 
That we are not dealing with the total invalidism existing among teachers is confirmed 
by the figures reported by Dr. Sigel, who iii 1895 examined nil the teachers in Leipzig and 
found that -jj.s per cent were suffering from definite diseases, mostly affections of lungs, 
heart, throat. <>r nervous system. (Terman. page 10. I 

The average time lost by teachers on account of illness was l6$4 school days, or more 
than three school weeks. This, however, does not measure the actual time of illness, as 
intervening Saturdays. Sundays and holidays should be added in order to arrive at the 
actual number of days during which teachers sufk"-ed disability. In other words, we may 
safely increase the calculated figure by .4, which gives 23.1 days as the actual average dur- 
ation of illne>> covering a period of only ten calendar months — the length of the school year. 

TABLE III. 
SEX DISTRIBUTION OF CASES 

The 4 1 4S cases of illness under investigation were divided according to the sex of 
the applicant as f< illows : 

Men 211 
Women 3937 

Percent of Women. Calculated on the Total Number of Cases of illness 05 

Percent of Men Calculated on the Total Number of Cases 01 Illness 5 

According to the unrevised Age-Table for Teachers furnished by the Municipal Pen- 
sion Commission, there were 2,594 men and 17.820 women in service during the year under 
investigation. On the basis of these figures the 

lVr cent of Absence of all thw Men in Service was 8 

Per cent of Absence of till the Women in Service was 22 

Time Lost by the ,VU7 Women 65,894 Days 

Time Lost by the ji 1 Men 2.747 Days 

Average Time Lost by Women Absent 17 Days 

age Time Lost by Men Absent 13 Days 

Table III confirms a general belief that women show a proportionately larger per- 
centage of absence due to illness than men. The numerical relation is as 22 to 8. but the 

Ige time lost by the two sexes approaches equality, a natural condition when one 
considers that the duration of illness is not vitally affected by sex. The New 
York City experience shown in this table is far more favorable than that reported 
for the city of Amsterdam (Terman, page 14) where _' (.; per cent of the 1203 male 
teachers (against 8 per cent in N. Y. city) lost time by illness during the year 11)03, and 
34.2 per cent of the 909 female teachers (against jj per cent in X. Y. city). 

TABLE IV. 

Table IV A, clearly discloses the existence of four prevalent ailments from which 
tiers in New York City suffered — Diseases of the Respiratory System, constituting 
more than one third of all the diseases reported; Infective Diseases; Diseases of the 
Nervous System; and Diseases of the Digestive System. These four groups, in the 
order named) constitute the Occupational Disease of our teaching corps. To determine 
whether the percentages reported for these diseases are higher than those for other pro- 
ns and Occupations, b to be the aim of a future investigation. 
I lie figures submitted in Table IV A admit of interesting comparisons with inves- 
tigations reported by Terman (The Teachers' Health, Chapter II). Allowance must be 



made, however, for differences in the classification of diseases as well as for the operation 

of local causes which may affect the tabulation : 

Absence Caused by City of Amsterdam Sweden N, Y. City 



Nervous Affections 


34 per cent 


36 per cent 


15 per cent 


Throat and Lungs (Resp.) 


16.5 per cent 


22.8 per cent 


35 per cent 


Acute Contagious Diseases | 


6.5 per cent 




16 per cent 


Digestive Disorders 




7.6 per cent 


11 per cent 



Except for Nervous Affections, which, as will be shown later, are not fully recorded 
in our investigation, the New York City experience is far more unfavorable than those 
reported for the two places abroad. 

Table 4- A 

Percentage Distribution of Ailments CausingThe Absence of4I48 
New York CityTeachers DuringThe School Year 1913- 1914. 













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35% l6°fo l5°/o ll°fo 333222 8% =/00°fo 

PERCENTAGE. OF TOTAL NUMBER ABSENT. 

Table 4- B 

Percentage Distribution of Time- 68 64/ Da ys Lost By The 
*>AME Group ofTeachers on Account of Diseases Shown in Table A. 



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Pecentaqe ofTotal Time Lost. 



Tabic IV shows thai 77 per cenl of the cases and 7- per cent of the total time lost by 
teachers .,11 account "t' illness are attributable t<> the four Occupational Diseases. A 
comparative study of Tables A and B also indicates that the time lost on account of these 
four prevalent diseases is not proportional t>> the number of cases reported under each 
class. Diseases of the Nervous System made heaviest inroads on school time and In- 
fective Diseases bast. 

TABLE V. 

Ibis table is an extension of Table III to determine the existence of 'critical' age 
periods of illness among our teachers. While the graphs indicate age fluctu- 
ations, it should be noted that these fluctuations are confined to certain zones and 
that the fluctuations are, therefore, zonal rather than periodic, if we ignore the extreme 



Table 5 

Percentage Distribution oeJllness CausingThe Absence-of4I48Teacher3 
Arranged AccordingTo SexandBv Age Groups. Percentages Calculated 
on The Total Number ofTeachers in Each Age Group. 

Lavitt BarsMI . 
PS. 62.. .Ian 



30% 


56% 




















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LEGEND 

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TOTAL 



limits of the graph 'Below 20' and '65-70', which ar« not significant, being based upon too 
few instances to warrant generalization. It is true there is a tendency toward maxima 
in age-groups '35-40' and '50-55'; but. on the whole, the fluctuations are too moderate to 
warrant the assumption of 'critical' periods. The graphs also emphasize the marked 
differences between the per cents of illness of the two sexes. 

TABLE VI. 
The graph for women in Table VI shows a slow and steady increase in the average 



time lost by illness with advancing years, while that for men presents such marked and 
unaccountable fluctuations as to require future verification. Considering the entire teach- 



tC 



Table 6 

A verage Number of School Days LostBy4I48 Teachers on Account 
Da^ s OFlLLNe:ss During 1913-14 Arranged AccordingTo SexandByAge Groups 



/36 Days 




Oavid Bavshell. 
PS. 62 hrttn. 



LEGEND 

MEN 

WOMEN 

TOTAL 



ing staff, it may fairly be asserted that the average time lost by absence steadily increases 
with age. Here, also, we shall have to ignore the extreme group limits as based upon an 
insufficient number of cases. 

TABLE VII. 

A comparison of the per cents of illness for the four Occupational Diseases with 
similar per cents reported by Terman (Teachers' Health, page 13) for the Provident 
Branch of the National Society of English Teachers embracing 18,000 members, emphas- 
izes the more unfavorable morbidity experience disclosed by the investigation for New 
York City. 



Disease 



English Teachers 



New York City Teachers 



Nervous Complaints -9 P? 1 " cent 

Diseases of the Respiratory System | 343 per cent 



per cent 



7.25 per cent 



Diseases of the Digestive System 



1.58 per cent 



2.2 per cent 



Disregarding the age-groups at both ends of the graphs as inconclusive because of 
the paucity of cases, we again note that all the graphs for the four prevalent diseases 
show zonal rather than periodic fluctuations; nowhere are there distinct signs of 'critical* 
ages of susceptibility to these diseases. Whatever else may be inferred from these age 
distributions, one fact appears evident, that illness among our city teachers appears to 
be no respecter of age and throws its burden indiscriminately on old and young. This 
being at variance with surmise, warrants further study to determine the accuracy of these 
results and their applicability to school years other than that under investigation. 

Nor should several important factors be overlooked in analyzing the foregoing tables. 
Only 24 cases of. tuberculosis were reported by the teachers' physicians, an insignificant 
number when one considers that Terman concludes that "statistics recorded indicate a 



10% 



5% 



Table 7. 

Percentage. Distribution of Absence Caused By The Four 
Occupational Diseases Disclosed ByThis Investigation 
Arranged According To Sex and By Age Groups. Percents 
Calculated on The Total Number ofTeachersin Each Age Group 
3i7? Respiratory d/seases^-467 cases- 7±percent ofteach/ng corps. 



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Diseases of digestive organs^-56 cases -2i percent op teaching corps. 



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higher tuberculosis mortality for the teaching profession than for the notoriously un- 
healthful occupations of stone-cutter or saloonkeeper". The small number of reported 
cases in this investigation does not necessarily mean the non-existence of tuberculosis among 
the teachers of the city. Considerate physicians may have used more euphonious termin- 
ology to designate the ailment. A teacher reported as suffering from active tuberculosis 
would receive the immediate attention of the Health Board, an ordeal which many 
physicians would wish to spare their patients. 

Again, the total number of cases of Nervous Diseases reported in this investigation 
does not adequately set forth the situation existing in our public schools. The cases 
recorded are only such as resulted in absence. No notice whatever was taken of the 
thousands of teachers suffering from neurasthenia, who to the best of their ability are 
attending to their daily work. The well known type of teacher, in a state of constant 
pathological fatigue, nervously unstrung, who by sheer dint of heroic effort is sacrificing 
her remaining vitality in the cause of public service, has not been considered in this inves- 
tigation. Should the Committee pursue this inquiry for another year, an attempt will be 
made to determine how many such teachers are serving in our schools. 

SUMMARY OF CONCLUSIONS 

1. On behalf of future investigators the hope is expressed that the educational 
authorities of the city will soon embody in their official reports essential statistics relating 
to the causes of absence of teachers and supervisors to compensate for the almost total 
lack of official information bearing on this subject. A reliable table of the ages of all the 
teachers in service, figures indicating the number cf cases of illness arranged by sex and 
according to ages, and the time lost by absentees, would furnish valuable material for 
investigations of great importance to our teachers. 

2. The fact disclosed by this investigation — that over one-fifth of the entire teach- 
ing and supervising corps of the city was absent because of illness during one school-year — 
indicates the existence of an administrative problem of great moment. 

3. The teachers' health ultimately determines the efficiency of the entire educational 
system of the community. This self-evident fact impels the Committee on School Problems 
to urge competent agencies having mechanical and technical facilities for scientific 
research to conduct further careful statistical study of all the factors that may give 
rise to the heavy morbidity among teachers. Among such factors should be considered : 

(a) Position of the absentee — whether teacher or supervisor. 

(b) Size of class taught, or school supervised. 

(c) Sex of the pupil taught. 

(d) Nationality of the pupil taught. 

(e) School district in which the teacher is employed. 

(f) After school occupations of the teacher. 

(g) Years of service. 

(h) Hygienic condition of the class-room with special reference to heating, lighting 
and ventilating. 

4. (a) The investigation has clearly disclosed the existence of four prevalent or 
Occupational Diseases among the teachers of the city viz. : Diseases of the Respiratory 
System, Infective Diseases, Diseases of the Nervous System, and Diseases of the Diges- 
tive Organs, these four groups comprising JJ per cent of all the cases reported and account- 
ing for 72 per cent of the entire time lost by illness. The teachers who suffered from 
Respiratory Diseases constituted 7*4 per cent of the entire teaching staff ; those suffering 
from Infective diseases 3.33 per cent; from Nervous Disorders 3 per cent; and from 
Disorders of the Digestive Organs 2.2 per cent. 

(b) The few instances in which comparisons could be made between the New York 
City morbidity experience of teachers and those of other cities, are, on the whole, 
decidedly unfavorable to New York City. Teachers in New York show a far heavier per- 
centage of illness caused by Diseases of the Respiratory System and Digestive Disorders 



that) those recorded for the teachers of the city of Amsterdam, the teachers of certain 
sections of Sweden, and by the National Society of English Teachers embracing 18,000 
members. 

id The exceedingly heavy morbidity rate ascribable to Respiratory Diseases, desi 
the cart tul consideration of the school authorities. The .suspicion has been frequently 
voiced that the ventilation <>f our school rooms may be causative of serious physical 
disorders, ami the marked prevalence of ailments which may he attributed to this cause 
lends color to the suspicion and brings it into the realm of probability. It is also evident 
that should this cause operate against the health of the teacher, it must also jeopardize 
the physical well-being of the pupil. 

5. A marked difference i^ shown in the ahsence records of the two sexes. During 
the year under investigation, 8 per cent of all the men, and 22 per cent of all the women 
employed a- teachers were absent on account oi illness. The average number of school 
days lost by men was 13, by women 17. 

6. The graphs showing the distribution of the four prevalent Occupational Diseases 
arranged according to sex and by age-groups do not reveal the existence of critical age 
periods of illness, during which ahsence is markedly greater than at other times. The 
distribution, in other words, is zonal rather than periodic, indicating that no age group 
can claim special immunity from the four prevalent disorders. This applies to both sexes. 

7. The graphs showing the distribution of time lost by absence arranged according 
to age-groups, disclose a gradual average increase in time lost with advancing years. 

In bringing this preliminary report to a clo?e. the Committee on School Problems 
wishes to express its deep obligation to the many individuals who have aided its work with 
advice, suggestions and encouragement. The thanks of the Committee are due to Dr. 
Albert Shiels, Director of Reference and Research, for his valuable cooperation in secur- 
ing documentary information; to Dr. Henry Fleischman, Administrator of the Educational 
Alliance, for the preparation of Table I; to City Chamberlain Henry Bruere and to Auditor 
George Buck for their courtesy in furnishing age-tables of the teachers of the city ; to 
Dr. C. Ward Crampton for helpful suggestions on the conduct of the work ; to Principal 
Lyman Best for furnishing important statistical data; to Principal Leon W. Goldrich, 
for helpful constructive criticism during the progress of the work; to the Misses Lavinia and 
Jessie Allen and Mr. Abraham Cohen, devoted and self-sacrificing teachers of our city, 
for giving so freely of their time to the laborious statistical compilations involved in 
the preparation of this report. 

All of which is respectfully submitted. 

Oswald Schlockow, 

Chairman, Committee on School Problems, 

Principal, Public School 109-B, Brooklyn. 



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